Page 71 of A Line in the Sand
After the customer had gone, Caroline refilled Molly’s cup. “Here. You really look like you could use more chocolate.”
“Thanks.” She took a long pull from her straw.
“Why are you stressing yourself out so badly over whether or not you can train other dogs to do what Ursula does? It’s a pretty amazing feat. Maybe your dog is just special and that’s that.” Caroline reached across the counter to scratch Ursula’s dainty chin.
“Of courseshe’s special.” Hadn’t Molly been saying as much since the day she’d adopted her? “But the grant is worth almost a million dollars. What if I mess it all up?”
Caroline’s gaze narrowed. “You’ve been talking to your parents, haven’t you?”
“Maybe.” Molly groaned. “Okay, yes. I have. You wouldn’t have believed how proud my dad sounded when I told him I was heading up the entire grant effort. It was the best conversation we’ve had in a long time.”
Caroline sighed. “But now you feel pressured to win the grant, not only to save the aquarium but also to please your folks, am I right?”
Molly nodded. “Exactly, except you also left out the part where I’ll feel like I let Max down if I’m unsuccessful.”
“You won’t be lettinganyonedown, Molls. Ursula alone is going to make a big impact on the island’s conservation efforts. Anything else is just icing on the cake.” As if to prove her point, Caroline reached into the bakery case for a cupcake and set it down in front of Molly. It was one of Violet’s special Sidekick Snickerdoodle cupcakes, decorated to look like Ursula.
“I’m not sure I can eat that after having two frozen lattes,” Molly said. “But I love that Violet’s still making these. I thought they were just a one-off for bingo night back when I was still fired.”
“They were. Violet brought them back by popular demand because everyone in Turtle Beach is so proud of your smart little dog.”
Molly felt the tension in her shoulders ease just a tiny bit. “Really?”
“Yes, really. And we’re proud ofyoutoo, Molly. All of us.” Caroline’s mouth curved into a knowing grin. “Even Max.”
“Don’t be so sure—I begged one of the local firemen to help me train five dogs and a cat to sniff out sea turtle nests on the beach. When I stop and think about it, it sounds legitimately crazy pants.”
“Exactly.” Caroline dropped the snickerdoodle cupcake into a pink bag with Violet’s Sweetness on Wheels logo and handed it to Molly. “No one on the entire island would take something like this on. Only you, Molls. That in and of itself is pretty special and don’t you forget it.”
Ursula’s nose twitched in the direction of the bakery bag. Sometimes Molly wondered if her favorite British baking show might be a bad influence.
She smiled at Caroline. “Thank you, and I’m not just talking about the coffee and cupcake.”
“Anytime. Now go be a mermaid. I’ll see you later this afternoon for the Under the Sea Ball planning meeting.”
Go be a mermaid.At least that was something Molly had a decent handle on. Plus the Under the Sea Ball was already coming together. The Turtle Team just needed to go over a few final details.
Something miraculous happened just a few minutes later when Molly arrived at the aquarium for her mermaid shift—somethingalmostas miraculous as Betty White correctly identifying the scent of sea turtle eggs. Silver the seahorse at long last gave birth to over a thousand tiny seahorse babies.
The blessed event happened just after Molly finished changing into her glittering fishtail. She rounded the corner into the lobby with Ursula trotting alongside in her lobster costume and found Max and Nate staring intently at Silver’s tank, their faces just inches from the glass.
“What’s going on?” Molly asked.
Max’s gaze swiveled toward her. The grin on his face was so boyish and goofy that her heart felt like it was being squeezed in a vise. “Seahorse babies. Come see!”
She mermaid-stepped toward the tank and nudged her way in between Max and Nate. Teeny-tiny seahorses floated everywhere, like an explosion of confetti. Each one was smaller than a grain of rice, with tiny little snouts and curlicue tails.
Her hand flew to her throat. “Oh my gosh, they’re precious. How many do you think there are?”
“So far I’ve counted four hundred and twenty-three,” Nate said.
Molly and Max laughed, but when Molly glanced at Nate, his expression was dead serious.
Max grinned at her, and when they switched their attention back toward the tank, she felt his hand reach for hers. They stood there quietly watching the newborns float in the water, dainty little miracles. The moment was complete and utter joy, and the warmth in Max’s fingertips made Molly feel like everything truly would be okay. It was crazy how so much hope and newness could be wrapped up in a thousand tiny packages.
“I’ll go move the newborns to the rearing tanks,” Nate said.
He pushed through the door to the aquarium’s behind-the-scenes area. Molly expected Max to follow, but he stayed put. Through the glass walls of the seahorse tank, they could see Nate on the other side. He reached into the aquarium with a glass beaker and began scooping out some of the floating babies and moving them into smaller tanks.
